Configuration File Editor - ObjectVision/GeoDMS GitHub Wiki

GeoDMS configuration files can be viewed or edited with an ASCII editor. We advise using an editor supporting parameters for opening a file and positioning a cursor. This makes editing easy; the menu option: edit configuration source in the GeoDMS GUI can immediately show the relevant part of the code (if the setting in the Tools > Options is correctly configured).

We have experience and made language definition files available (highlighting the GeoDMS grammar in different colours) for two editors.

As the development of Crimson Editor has stopped, we advise using Notepad++.

For intensive users, we recommend using Visual Studio Code (https://code.visualstudio.com/download).

There are two places to get the GeoDMS language extension, and they are kept in step with the release:

• Packaged, and always the newest: github.com/ObjectVision/GeoDMS_Languages/releases/latest publishes a .vsix for Visual Studio Code and one for Visual Studio 2022/2026. In VS Code install it from the Extensions panel (ctrl+shift+x) with the ... menu > Install from VSIX...; in Visual Studio, double-click the .vsix.
• Bundled with your GeoDMS: since GeoDMS 20.19.0 the setup also installs the extension into %programfiles%/ObjectVision/GeoDms<version>/VSCode/geodms-language, with a README-vscode-extension.txt beside it. That copy matches the engine you have. The setup additionally copies it into the .vscode\extensions folder of the account that ran the setup - which, because the setup runs elevated, need not be the account you edit with; if the extension does not show up, copy the folder from the installation yourself.

Use an extension that is not older than your GeoDMS. Before 20.19.0 the extension completed the value types as UInt32, Float64, SPoint and the literals as TRUE/FALSE, and inserted those spellings into your configuration; the engine has registered them in lower case since 20.9, so each one reports a case mix-up warning.

In the GeoDMS GUI, configure the Local Machine Option to enable jumping to the editor. By setting up the application field to:

"C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Programs\Microsoft VS Code\Code.exe"

And the parameters field:

--goto "%F":%L

We recommend using the text editor Notepad++. A language file for each software release is available in the same folder as the installed GeoDMS software (%programfiles%/ObjectVision/GeoDmsVersion).

For instructions on how to import the language file into Notepad++ see Setup GeoDMS language file in Notepad. Take the one that ships with your GeoDMS version: since 20.19.0 it spells operators and value types the way the engine registers them, so a config written with its completions raises no case mix-up warnings.

To make sure GeoDMS understands where Notepad++ is installed, select your application with the folder button next to the application. The application control shows the path of the editor, e.g.:

"C:/Program Files/Notepad++/Notepad++.exe"

Parameters can be set to open the correct file and position in the file. With the button: Set default parameters for editor, the advised settings are set:

"%F" -n%L

If you installed Notepad ++ in a different folder than Notepad suggested, adjust the reference to the folder.

For Crimson Editor (if you still want to use it, use version 3.70), language definition files can be downloaded here: CE_syntax_files

Copy the contents of the zip file in the indicated folders in the Crimson Editor program files folder.

In the GeoDMS GUI the setting for Settings > local machine options > application should be:

"%ProgramFiles32%\Crimson Editor\cedt.exe"

with as command line parameters:

/L:%L "%F"

If you installed Crimson Editor in a different folder than the folder Crimson Editor suggested, adjust the reference to the folder. If your folder contains spaces, please use the quoted full path as in the NotePad++ example.